For fans of Ali Benjamin’s The Thing About Jellyfish and Katherine Applegate’s Crenshaw comes the humorous and heart aching story of one girl’s struggle to keep hope alive for her and her younger sister in Sunny Pines Trailer Park. Twelve-year-old Olivia Hales has a foolproof plan for winning a million dollars so that she and her little sister, Berkeley, can leave behind Sunny Pines Trailer Park. But first she has to: · Fix the swamp cooler and make dinner and put Berkeley to bed because her mom is too busy to do all that · Write another letter to her dad even though he hasn’t written back yet · Teach Berk the important stuff, like how to make chalk drawings, because they can’t afford day care and Olivia has to stay home from school to watch her · Petition her oddball neighbors for a circus spectacular, because there needs to be something to look forward to at dumb-bum Sunny Pines · Become a super-secret spy to impress her new friend Bart · Enter a minimum of fourteen sweepstakes a day. Who knows? She may already be a winner! Olivia has thought of everything . . . except herself. Who will take care of her when she needs it? Luckily, somewhere deep down between her small intestine and stomach is a tiny voice reminding her that sometimes people can surprise you—and sometimes your family is right next door.

Looks at the increasing abundance of status in our society and considers its effects, including the tendency to split into ever more specific groups to enhance status.

Hope and Optimism for Life’s Battle “Life is a puzzle, to be sure… but to every puzzle there is an answer.” The power to do anything you want resides only within you. Be A Winner urges you to make use of it and be everything you have ever wanted to be. The author, Norman Vincent Peale, has outlined in this book, methods of living and attitudes of mind that you can follow to win over any obstacle that may come your way in life. It highlights all the possible sources of your spiritual and personal power and tells you how you can use them to your best possible advantage. Norman Vincent Peale, one of the most influential clergymen of the 20th century, is the author of forty-six books, including the international bestseller The Power of Positive Thinking. He was a progenitor of the theory of “positive thinking”.Dr. Peale’s legacy continues today through the Peale Center for ChristianLiving, the Outreach Division of Guideposts.

"In much the same way that Good to Great uncovered hitherto hidden secrets of highly successful companies, Navarro’s Always a Winner uses extensive research to reveal the overriding importance of learning how to forecast and strategically manage the business cycle for competitive advantage. In doing so, this book provocatively explores a critical aspect of successful management virtually untapped by the existing strategy literature." —Dan DiMicco, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Nucor Steel " Always a Winner is an important and timely guide to thriving in challenging economic times. Prof. Navarro deftly bridges the academic and business communities, showing corporate leaders how to read economic tea-leaves to anticipate business cycles. His "Master Cyclist" credo offers many practical tips and real-world case studies for steering companies through turbulent economic seas." —Mark Greene, Ph.D, Chief Executive Officer, FICO (Fair Isaac Corp.) "Navarro’s Always a Winner shows why forecasting the economy with a ruler can be lethal for corporate executives and money managers. He demonstrates how to skillfully anticipate the ups and downs of the economy and successfully navigate through them. The current economic crisis clearly demonstrates why this book is so important to have on your bookshelf." —Mark Zandi, Chief Economist and Cofounder of Moody’s Economy.com "Always a Winner is required reading for every entrepreneur, money manager, and independent investor hoping to outperform the market and retire one day." —Mark T. Brookshire, Founder of StockTrak.com and WallStreetSurvivor.com " Navarro’s wealth of real world examples will show you how to make both economic recessions and recoveries invaluable allies in executing competitive corporate strategies. A must read!" —Lakshman Achuthan, Managing Director, Economic Cycle Research Institute Why recessions are far more dangerous than any 10 competitors Most companies make a lot of money during economic expansions-and lose a lot of money during recessions. That is the way it has always been. That is the way it need not always be. This book will show you how to "always be a winner" over the course of the entire business cycle-not just when economic times are good. To do this job, this book will arm you with all the strategies and tactics and forecasting tools you will need to profitably manage your organization through the business cycle seasons-from the best of boom times to the worst of recessionary times. In this book, you will learn to Forecast movements and key recessionary turning points in the business cycle Implement a set of powerful "battle-tested" strategies over the course of the business cycle Rebuild your organization with a strategic business cycle orientation and thereby make it much more recession-resistant and resilient over the longer term The forecasting tools and management strategies revealed in this book have been developed over the last five years by the author-the world's leading expert on managing the business cycle for competitive advantage. By learning to strategically manage the business cycle, your organization will be able to create a powerful competitive and sustainable advantage over its rivals and thereby find the grail sought by every executive team in the world-superior financial performance. In this way, Always a Winner provides you with the in-depth insight and practical advice you need to help your company survive and thrive in the increasingly risky conditions of the 21st century.

9-12 yrs.

From New York Times bestselling author and senior economic correspondent at The New York Times, how to survive—and thrive—in this increasingly challenging economy. Every ambitious professional is trying to navigate a perilous global economy to do work that is lucrative and satisfying, but some find success while others struggle to get by. In an era of remarkable economic change, how should you navigate your career to increase your chances of landing not only on your feet, but ahead of those around you? In How to Win in a Winner-Take-All World, Neil Irwin, senior economic correspondent at the New York Times, delivers the essential guide to being successful in today’s economy when the very notion of the “job” is shifting and the corporate landscape has become dominated by global firms. He shows that the route to success lies in cultivating the ability to bring multiple specialties together—to become a “glue person” who can ensure people with radically different technical skills work together effectively—and how a winding career path makes you better prepared for today's fast-changing world. Through original data, close analysis, and case studies, Irwin deftly explains the 21st century economic landscape and its implications for ambitious people seeking a lifetime of professional success. Using insights from global giants like Microsoft, Walmart, and Goldman Sachs, and from smaller lesser known organizations like those that make cutting-edge digital effects in Planet of the Apes movies or Jim Beam bourbon, How to Win in a Winner-Take-All World illuminates what it really takes to be on top in this world of technological complexity and global competition.